"A former highway patrol officer was found guilty
today of killing her husband three years ago by
shooting him in the head while they sat in their
car on a freeway off-ramp.
Tomiekia Johnson, 32, was convicted of first-
degree murder and faces 50 years to life in prison
when sentenced on March 9.
Johnson collapsed and fell under a table while the
verdict was being read at a courtroom in Los
Angeles. The room was cleared and she was removed
on a stretcher but her condition was not
immediately known.
Johnson shot her husband Marcus Lemons once in the
head in February 2009, then drove to her parents'
home in Compton with her husband's body in the
passenger seat.
Johnson reported the shooting, telling
investigators she shot her husband in self-defense
after the couple argued, he threatened to kill her
and began choking her.
She testified during the trial that she and her
husband had been for a few drinks at a restaurant
that evening before setting off on the drive home.
They started to fight, she pulled over into a lay-
by and told her husband to get out of the car but
he grabbed the keys from the ignition.
A struggle over her purse, which contained a
handgun, ensued between the couple and fearing for
her life she shot him, Johnson said.
She told jurors: 'I was scared. I didn't want to
die. When I grabbed it tight, it fired.'
Prosecutors argued the shooting was not an
accident and called witnesses who said Johnson
tended to drink excessively and was aggressive.
Forensic evidence and testimony revealed that
Johnson fired an intentional contact shot,
prosecutors said. Johnson was still a CHP officer
at the time of the off-duty shooting."